Cullen Investment Group LTD. Sells 9,614 Shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC)

Cullen Investment Group LTD. cut its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Free Report) by 13.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 64,155 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,614 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD.'s holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated were worth $5,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 14.4% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,316 shares of the company's stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 8.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 151,523 shares of the company's stock worth $11,552,000 after purchasing an additional 11,795 shares during the last quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 454,202 shares of the company's stock worth $34,628,000 after purchasing an additional 10,482 shares during the last quarter. Capstone Triton Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Capstone Triton Financial Group LLC now owns 10,469 shares of the company's stock worth $798,000 after purchasing an additional 210 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC ADV raised its position in McCormick & Company, Incorporated by 8.1% during the fourth quarter. Smith Shellnut Wilson LLC ADV now owns 3,263 shares of the company's stock worth $249,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares in the last quarter. 79.74% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Argus lowered shares of McCormick & Company, Incorporated from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $83.14.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Katherine Jenkins sold 7,642 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.38, for a total value of $583,695.96. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Gregory Repas sold 2,750 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.42, for a total transaction of $223,905.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,266 shares in the company, valued at approximately $184,497.72. The trade was a 54.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 60,392 shares of company stock worth $4,898,101 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 23.80% of the company's stock.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Stock Performance

Shares of MKC traded up $0.02 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $72.75. The company had a trading volume of 557,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,036,146. McCormick & Company, Incorporated has a 12 month low of $66.88 and a 12 month high of $86.24. The firm has a market cap of $19.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.80, a PEG ratio of 3.76 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a fifty day moving average of $75.52 and a 200-day moving average of $77.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.31, a current ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated (NYSE:MKC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 25th. The company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.64 by ($0.04). McCormick & Company, Incorporated had a return on equity of 14.89% and a net margin of 11.73%. The business had revenue of $1.61 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.61 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.63 earnings per share. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's revenue was up .2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that McCormick & Company, Incorporated will post 3.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

McCormick & Company, Incorporated Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 21st. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 7th were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 7th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.47%. McCormick & Company, Incorporated's payout ratio is 61.86%.

About McCormick & Company, Incorporated

McCormick & Co, Inc engages in the manufacturing, marketing, and distribution of spices, seasoning mixes, condiments, and other flavorful products to retail outlets, food manufacturers, and foodservice businesses. It operates through the Consumer and Flavor Solutions segments. The Consumer segment sells spices, seasonings, condiments, and sauces.